Marion Ross Biography

Fast Facts

• An aspiring actress at 13, she changed the spelling of her first name from "Marian" to "Marion" because she thought it might look better on a marquee
• First acting job was at California's La Jolla Playhouse, where she worked under the tutelage of director Mel Ferrer
• Named San Diego State University's Most Outstanding Actress while attending school there
• Made her TV debut in 1953, playing an Irish maid in the comedy Life With Father; also made her big-screen debut that year in the comedy Forever Female
• First Broadway appearance was as Asia Booth in a 1958 production of Edwin Booth
• Star-making role of Marion Cunningham on Happy Days was spun-off from an appearance in a 1972 episode of Love American Style
• Received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2001